ORLANDO, Fla. — Kurt Kitayama only had to look around at the players next to him in the practice area and right below him on the leaderboard at Bay Hill to know what he was up against March 5 in the Arnold Palmer Invitational. “You can’t ignore it. You got to know where you’re at […]
10-year-old Japanese golfer closing in on 12th sponsor
July 21, 2022 by Leave a Comment
EL CAJON, Calif. — Miroku Suto of Japan looks like a professional golfer with logos of 11 sponsors splashed across her polo shirt, cap, bag and even her belt. Her parents say the deals are worth in the mid-six figures annually, with some contracts for 10 years. A 12th sponsorship is waiting when she returns […]
A big year still a blur for U.S. Women’s Open champ Yuka Saso
January 6, 2022 by Leave a Comment
Yuka Saso finally had time to reflect on her breakthrough year, and it still felt like a blur. Winning the U.S. Women’s Open with a birdie on the third playoff hole at Olympic Club was a life-changer. Meeting her golf idol, Rory McIlroy, the following week during the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines might have […]
Morikawa wins British Open for 2nd major
July 22, 2021 by Leave a Comment
SANDWICH, England — Collin Morikawa was making one of the most satisfying walks in golf, down the 18th fairway as a soon-to-be British Open champion, when he looked up at the huge grandstand surrounding the green. It was filled with spectators, who firstly were applauding and soon giving a standing ovation to a 24-year-old American […]
Filipino-Japanese teen Saso wins U.S. Women’s Open
June 10, 2021 by Leave a Comment
Filipino-Japanese teenager and Japan LPGA Tour player Yuka Saso won the U.S. Women’s Open on June 6, beating Japan’s Nasa Hataoka in a three-hole playoff after the pair finished the final round tied for the lead at 4-under. A dual citizen with a Filipino mother and Japanese father, Saso tied Park Inbee as the youngest […]
Japan heartened by Matsuyama’s historic Masters win
April 15, 2021 by Leave a Comment
TOKYO — People living in the hometown of Hideki Matsuyama and his university town in Japan on April 12 congratulated the golfer, who became the first player from the country to claim a men’s major golf championship this past weekend. In Tokyo, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga called Matsuyama’s Masters victory at Augusta National Golf Club […]
Morikawa plays a steady hand to win Workday Championship
March 4, 2021 by Leave a Comment
BRADENTON, Fla. — The plan was for PGA champion Collin Morikawa to wear a red shirt with his black pants Feb. 28 to show support for Tiger Woods as he recovers from career-threatening leg injuries from a car crash. The clothes shipped to him never arrived, so Morikawa did the next best thing at the […]
‘I am who I am’: Collin Morikawa embraces his role as an Asian American athlete
January 1, 2021 by Leave a Comment
For a second, Collin Morikawa didn’t even smile. Leaning over to pick up his ball after a short putt on the final hole at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco, it looked like the conclusion of any other round of golf. Then, he broke into a huge smile. “I’m on cloud nine, I don’t know […]
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